The Doctor's Best Mate
by Styx Volturi-Romani
Summary: A small story that takes place after the Doctor is attacked by some unknown enemy. AU considering Rose is there and it takes place after the Parting of the Ways. Doctor/Rose fluff!
1. Chapter 1

**Hi, out there! I'm kinda new to this so I'd like positive reviews my first time 'round. This is basically 9/Rose fluff and it's a bit AU. It's what would have happened if the Doctor hadn't regenerated after he kissed Rose in the _Parting of the Ways_.**

**Enjoy!**

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Rose gasped as the Doctor ran through the TARDIS door, holding his side and clearly in pain. She ran to him and held one of his arms, "What happened?" He shook his head, in too much pain to talk. He was afraid if he stopped clenching his teeth and opened his mouth, he'd startle her with an ear shattering scream. Rose understood and led him to the back of the TARDIS where medical supplies and anesthetic suitable for a Time Lord were sitting on a table in the med bay.

She laid him down on the table and wiped some sweat from his forehead. He was dangerously close to regeneration. She hated to think of what might happen if he woke up and… didn't remember her. She tugged his arm away, to which he yelled in pain, and began to clean it the best way she knew how. Thankfully, the TARDIS was sending her instructions and pictures mentally and they were good enough that Rose impressed even the Doctor with her work.

Once she'd given him a shot of anesthetic, he'd gone into a fitful slumber and she was free to do the painful part of the job… and the goriest. She removed his jacket and shirt, careful to lay them both out so the blood didn't stain, and wiped the blood away from his chest. His whole right side was torn up, burns lining up and down and a faint outline of where his hand might have been when he was hurt. She grabbed his hand and looked at it, shocked to see that it was fine.

Ignoring his hand for now, she focused on getting his side cleaned up and patched up. After she finished, she headed into the control room for a cup of tea. She needed it. She was becoming so distressed over the Doctor lately; the fact that he'd been purposely putting himself in danger and getting upset at people for even looking at Rose wrong. He was never this possessive. He'd been possessive at first around Mickey and Jack but now it was starting to get ridiculous. There was definitely something wrong.

The Doctor's eyes snapped open and he searched the room, wondering if he'd regenerated or if he was just… dead. Since it was highly unlikely he'd be dead, he walked with some difficulty to a mirror and checked himself over. He hadn't regenerated but he looked horrible. His face was covered in light cuts and he could see his left eye starting to turn purple. He flinched when his arm hit his side and he gawked. He didn't remember fixing himself up. Did Rose…? Nah, she wasn't nearly good enough to do this herself.

He slipped out of the med bay and down the hall, trying to be quiet so as not to wake a sleeping Rose in her bedroom. He groaned as he heard someone clear their throat and he turned to see Rose standing at the end of the hallway, her toe tapping and a smug grin on her face, "Feeling better?" The Doctor rocked back and forth on his heels, not wanting to admit he felt sore, "Yeah, I'm fine." Rose strode forward and hugged him softly, careful not to touch his bandages, "I'm so glad you're okay… I thought… oh, who cares what I thought? What matters is that you're okay and you're still… you."

The Doctor's eyebrows rose. She was afraid he would regenerate, huh? It was a common fear for his companions, since it usually signified that he'd be getting a new, better, younger companion and shuffling the old one under the rug and never looking back… most of the time. There were a few, such as Susan and Ace, that he'd visited in the past but most of them… faded with the times. Honestly, he couldn't believe Rose was afraid of his regeneration. She seemed so strong, so sure of herself… maybe it was a façade, not unlike his own.

Rose gave a gentle squeeze and took a step back, "Tea?" The Doctor smiled, "Love some." As Rose trailed back to the kitchen, the Doctor silently crept to the TARDIS wardrobe and pulled on another shirt and his old leather jacket, the one that had remnants of blood still on it. He walked into the kitchen to see that Rose had not only made tea but a whole buffet for him. A whole table filled with all sorts of foods, most of them having something to do with bananas. He loved bananas.

He sat down and began eating while Rose sat opposite of him and smiled, "I'm glad you like it. I've been working on this whole feast for you since yesterday." The Doctor stopped eating for a moment to stare at Rose, "How long was I out?" Rose blinked sadly and she bowed her head, hiding the tears forming in her eyes, "A week." She may have hid the tears but the crack in her voice was clear as day. She hadn't been worried about regeneration as much as she was worried… he'd never wake up. He leaned forward and placed a hand on hers, "Rose… Rose, look at me."

She defiantly shook her head, refusing to let him see her cry, so he grabbed her chin gently and turned her head up to look at him, "Rose Tyler, you don't need to worry about me. I'm a Time Lord. If something were to happen to me, well… I'd just regenerate and everything would be back to normal except… there'd be a new me." He tried to give her his happiest grin but it only caused her to start shaking in sadness. His smile faded and he sighed, "Rose…"

He got up from his seat and walked to her, wrapping his arms around her as tight as his wounds would allow, "Rose Tyler, I will promise you that no matter what happens to me, you'll always be my very best companion… and my best mate. And for good measure, I'll stop being so thick headed… well, I'll try." She laughed a little and tilted her head up to look at him, letting him wipe away her tears with his thumb. He smiled, "Now Rose… are _you_ feeling better?" She nodded and sniffed, wiping her tears away with her sleeve.

He stood up and walked back to his seat, sitting down heavily and picking up his fork with a grin, "Good! I'm starving!" As he dug into his food, Rose considered something. The Doctor hadn't really shown her much emotion in all the time she'd been with him. Just then, when she'd felt the saddest in her life, he'd actually shown a bit of sympathy and emotion… even a bit of caring. Rose smiled to herself. She liked this new Doctor.

The Doctor continued to eat and miraculously, he'd eaten everything. He almost at the table cloth at one point and Rose giggled as he comically began to pull it out of his mouth with a blush. He cleared his throat, "So… what have you been up to since I was… well… asleep, you might say?" Rose shrugged, "Making this food, reading, thinking…" The Doctor chuckled, "Rose, thinking is dangerous for you." Rose narrowed her eyes at him in half mock anger and snapped, "I was actually wondering what I'd have to do if you didn't wake up."

All the smugness was gone from his face and replaced with nothing short of shock, "What were you considering?" Rose sighed; she hadn't meant to bring it up. She'd been considering asking the TARDIS to take her home. Or maybe back in time so she could stop the Doctor from whatever he'd been doing. Ultimately, she was thinking… maybe… she'd stay with the TARDIS. Without the Doctor, Rose would worry about her getting lonely and… well, girls got to stick together. Rose ran her finger across the table in front of her and muttered, "Not a lot actually. It was either go home or stay here."

The Doctor arched an eyebrow, "Here? In the TARDIS?" Rose nodded and the Doctor's eyebrows wrinkled in deep thought. He suddenly asked, "Why?" Rose smiled softly at the table and looked up to lock eyes with him, "I've grown too attached to just leave her. She's my home. Plus, I don't think it would be easy to just… leave you either." The Doctor stared at Rose and saw her in a new light. Rose cared about him enough to stay with him… _even if he was dead!_ Now that was loyalty. He wiped his mouth on a napkin and stood up, "Rose, I can't thank you enough for watching the old girl for me."

Rose was confused about the conversation switch but smiled, "Yeah, of course." With that, the Doctor did a one-eighty and walked out of sight. Rose blinked in confusion; why did he leave like that? Was he confused as well? Rose didn't know. She sighed, "Well, I guess it's bed then." As she walked to her room, she heard a shout from down the hall, "Good night Rose!" Rose smiled and yelled back, "Sleep well!" She entered her room and yawned, preparing for a good night's sleep.

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The Doctor took off his jacket gently and groaned, rolling his shoulder about halfway and wincing when it twinged. His shoulder had been hurt far worse than his side and Rose hadn't known that. He continued rolling it, trying to get the permanent knots to settle but it was futile. He sat down on the metal steps heavily and put his head in his hands, "Ugh…" The pain in his arm mixed with the thoughts of Rose was the worst feeling in the universe. Not only did he have to explain to Rose why he was acting weird but he had to explain to her what had happened before; why she could communicate with the TARDIS so well.

His head ached and he groaned again. He heard footsteps behind him and froze, tensing up until a pair of arms wrapped around his neck and something soft and warm leaned against his back. He sighed and relaxed, putting his hand over her arms and nuzzling his head into hers a little, "Shouldn't you be in bed?" Rose smirked and poked her tongue out through her teeth, "Couldn't sleep. What about you? You're the one who just took off without so much as a good bye. What's on your mind, almighty Doctor?" He smirked back at her 'almighty Doctor' comment but sighed sadly, "Rose, there's something I have to tell you." Rose leaned away from him slightly and the Doctor whimpered to quiet for her to hear. The warmth radiating from her had been helping his shoulder.

Rose leaned back on her hands and smiled, "What is it?" The Doctor found it extremely hard to say but after a few moments of silence, he was able to conjure up enough strength to say it, "Rose, do you remember when we were on Satellite 5?" Rose nodded, "Yeah, with the daleks and all that?" The Doctor nodded back, "How much do you remember?" Rose pondered for a moment before saying, "I remember you sending me away… but I don't remember how I got back." The Doctor winced and took a deep breath, "Rose, I'll tell you how you got back. When I sent you away, you became a stubborn ape again and came back to save me. You absorbed enough of the Time Vortex to come back and destroy the dalek fleet but… you almost died. You lost all memory of that day… and I never told you till now. I'm sorry."

Rose had disconnected after he'd said 'Time Vortex' and was now breathing so quickly that she thought her head might explode from the pressure. After fully processing what he'd said, she narrowed her eyes in confusion, "Wait… how did I survive?" The Doctor paled; he'd been afraid of this day. The day he'd have to admit to her that he'd had to… kiss her in order to save her life. It wasn't horrible. He hadn't slipped her the tongue or anything. He was just positive she'd think he was trying to hit on her while she was in a compromised state. He was worried she wouldn't want to be with him anymore.

The Doctor bowed his head, "I had to… remove the excess energy from you." Rose continued to stare at him with a mix of suspicion and confusion, "How?" The Doctor shook his head slightly and sighed, "I had to kiss you." Rose blushed and wondered how in the world she was able to forget that! A kiss with the Doctor… it was a rare thing, she assumed. It was only done when necessary. He _had_ to do it. Right… Rose nodded her head, "Alright… thank you." The Doctor blushed again and gave a forced smile, feeling the tension building in the air, "You're very welcome, Rose Tyler."

Both sat in silence until Rose couldn't take it anymore, "Doctor… did you… _have_ to kiss me?" The Doctor shrugged halfheartedly, "Well… yeah, kinda. It was either that or let you die and I'd never let you die. Not on my watch." Rose felt her heart swell a little but his answer made her happiness falter. He _did_ have to kiss her. Rose sulked for a second and was too engrossed in her self-pity to realize he'd said something more. She looked up suddenly, "What?"

The Doctor blushed and muttered something, staring at the floor with his hands stuffed in his pockets. Clearly she'd missed something important. Rose took a step forward, "Doctor, I didn't hear what you said." The Doctor looked at her as if gauging her reaction and said, "Rose, I may have had to kiss you then but you have to admit, eventually, we would have kissed."

Rose felt her heart swell further until it was at a bursting point. She couldn't help the massive grin that was permanently plastered onto her face. The Doctor arched an eyebrow, a small curious smile growing, "What?" Without warning, Rose grabbed his ears and tugged him into a twin heart stopping kiss. His eyes widened as she kissed him with as much love as she could and when she broke the kiss, he was swaying slightly, "Ah… well… heh…" He chuckled dumbly, an odd sound coming from the Doctor, and sighed, "Well… thank you."

Rose giggled, "Anything… really." He looked down at her and smiled warmly, "I'll remember that. Now… how's about a quiet peaceful trip to Barcelona? They have dogs with no noses!" With a grin, he wrapped his arm around her waist and set the coordinates into the TARDIS. Rose's head settled happily onto his shoulder and she smiled. She was living a life she'd never even dreamed of with a man who she considered to be the best in the universe and above all… she couldn't be happier.

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**Yes... No... Maybe... IDK? I live and thrive on reviews! **


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi again! Thanks for the reviews and favorites! :D They've made my whole year! So this next chapter is a bit of a filler because I don't have a real plot yet but I'm thinking of incorporating Eight or Ten in soon. Send me your thoughts!**

**Alons-y and Enjoy!**

The TARDIS grinded to a halt and the Doctor smiled, "Rose, wake up! We're here!" While they'd been traveling, Rose had decided to take a small nap on a couch the TARDIS had conjured up for her and now she sat up and yawned, stretching her arms, "Already? You'd think crossing the universe would take a bit more time…" The Doctor chuckled and gestured to the console, "Hello… time machine? It was barely any time at all…"

Rose rolled her eyes and stood up, swaying slightly as the TARDIS lurched to a bumpy stop. The Doctor grabbed her hand to steady her and led her to the TARDIS door, "So, you ready to explore Barcelona with me?" Rose grinned, her tongue poking out from between her teeth, "I was born ready." With a flourish, the Doctor opened the door and Rose gasped.

Barcelona was covered in beautiful, bright red and blue flowers in the shape of stars. Rose found it hard not to squint at the bright colors. The Doctor dragged her along through the field of large flowers into a patch of flowerless purple grass, "Rose…" He leaned down and picked a red flower from the ground, placing it behind Rose's ear and making her blush. He crossed his arm behind his back to hid his shyness and coughed into his hand, "Well… into town then?"

Rose smiled, "There's a town?" The Doctor nodded, arching an eyebrow at his companion, "Of course! Every civilization has at least one town… except that one planet near Pollux… oh well! Off we go!" He dragged her along again and soon they were walking along a blue road, hand in hand. He gave her hand a light squeeze and smirked, "Well… Rose, welcome to Barcelona."

She gasped again and the Doctor took on a smug grin as she began to drag him down the hill to the town below. Orange buildings lined the streets and barkers shouting in a different language held out fruit Rose didn't think looked edible. The Doctor plucked a fruit from one barkers hand and handed the barker a tiny silver coin, to which the barker excitedly thanked him. Rose blinked at the small fruit that the Doctor held out to her and hesitantly picked it up, "What is it?" The Doctor chuckled, "It's like an Earth apple but… juicier. Go on. Have a bite."

To show her it wasn't poisoned, he paid another silver coin and took a bite out of his own fruit, "See?" Rose watched him and then sniffed her own fruit, shrugging and taking a small bite. She smiled, "It's good!" The Doctor grinned back, "I told ya! You should listen to me more often…" She took another bite and then gasped, staring straight ahead, "Oh, my God…" The Doctor's laid back demeanor instantly disappeared and his back straightened, "What is it Rose?" Rose rushed forward to a small pen at the end of the street and cooed, "Oh, aren't they adorable…?" The Doctor peered down into the pen and couldn't help but smile. It was a pen full of nose-less puppies in all different colors.

Rose turned to the Doctor and gave him the biggest puppy dog eyes she could muster. The Doctor sternly crossed his arms, "No." Rose sulked a little and looked back at the pen, smiling softly when a blue puppy licked her hand. The Doctor tried to stay strong but… he couldn't bear to see Rose look that disappointed. With a flip of another silver coin, Rose lifted the small blue puppy from the pen and hugged it, "Oh, thank you!" She pressed a kiss to the Doctor's cheek and rushed towards another booth, unaware of the Doctor's blush. A couple of Barcelonians who'd been strolling along gave the Doctor a knowing look and he narrowed his eyes at them as they made kissy faces at him, "Oh, bugger off."

After Rose had done some window shopping and they'd eaten, they journeyed back to the TARDIS. As they walked in, the TARDIS gave a warm whir as it sensed the puppy in Rose's arms. The Doctor rolled his eyes, "Oh, stop it, you…" He grabbed a hold of one of Rose's hands, "Rose, you do know that if you plan to keep that puppy, you'll need to dye its fur brown and have a very convincing explanation for why he doesn't have a nose… right?" Rose nodded, "Yeah, I knew what I was getting into when I asked you to buy it for me…"

The Doctor scoffed, "You didn't ask me… you begged me." Rose shrugged, "It worked, didn't it?" The Doctor chuckled, "Yeah, but just this once." Rose hugged the puppy to her again and then looked up at the Doctor, "You know… getting a puppy is a big step." The Doctor paled and gave her an exasperated look, "Now why would you have to go and say something like that?" Rose smirked, "Well, it's the truth… isn't it?" The Doctor opened his mouth to retort something witty and rude but stopped. It _was_ the truth.

He sighed, "Yeah, it's the truth… but you know how I am about domestics. As it is, I'm going crazy about you using the sonic screwdriver to get the polish off your nails when you want a new color…" Rose laughed, "I'm never going to hear the end of that, will I?" The Doctor grinned, "Nope!" Rose jumped suddenly and reached into her pocket, setting the puppy on the ground as she opened her phone, "Oh no…"

The Doctor narrowed his eyes at the puppy as it stared at him and then looked back at Rose, "What's wrong?" Rose sighed, "It's mum's birthday. I totally forgot and I didn't get anything for her!" A light bulb went off in the Doctor's head and he smiled, "I have an idea…"

Jackie sighed, "Not even a phone call… she couldn't have even called me? I'm going to wring that Doctor's neck if he ever shows his face here again…" Her rant was interrupted by a knock at the door. Jackie threw her hand sin the air, "Finally! It's about time you got…" As she opened the door to admit her daughter, she was surprised to see the front porch empty save for a large box that seemed to be wiggling.

She picked up the box, aware of the weight sliding around in it, and looked around for anyone who might have left this for her. She put the box on the floor and noticed a blue tag on the bow. She tugged the tag off and smiled as she read it, "Happy Birthday Mum! Sorry about not coming to see you. Hopefully this makes up for it. Luv, Rose and the Doctor." She excitedly pulled the bow off and gasped as a small ball of blue fur flew into her lap.

Jackie laughed out loud as it licked her face, "They got me a puppy? Oh, how sweet! Now what shall I name you…?" As the puppy wiggled in her arms, she remembered a time when Rose had been a tiny girl and didn't want to get her shots so she'd wiggled and wiggled until Jackie's arms were sore. Jackie smiled at the memory and patted the dog's head, "I think I'll name you Wiggles." As she petted the puppy's head, she gasped, "Good Lord, what happened to your nose?!"

Rose had never laughed so hard in her life. The Doctor held a tight hand over her mouth so she didn't blow their cover but Rose was still shaking with laughter. They ducked down from the window and walked back to the TARDIS, Rose giggling the whole way, "Oh, I've never seen my mom so surprised in my life… Did you see her face?" The Doctor nodded and smiled smugly, "No matter what I do, you're mother never has any faith in me… but I can always hope!"

**I hope you like! Again, just a filler and I'm taking suggestions for plot lines. I've written so many stories, I'm afraid I might repeat myself! :P Review for TARDIS cookies!**


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